Travel Rewards Credit Cards

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Today and later this week members of the M-Network of personal finance blogs are publishing a series of articles on vacationing. For my part, I thought I’d share with you how we’ve taken several vacations for free or for a greatly reduced cost using credit card travel rewards.

Last year we flew to Guatemala on points earned on our American Express card. This summer, my wife is taking a trip to meet friends from college, and the airline ticket was paid for with an airline reward credit card. In 2005 we paid for tickets to London with a travel rewards credit card. We’ve literally saved thousands of dollars on vacations from reward programs, so I thought I’d share with you some of the best reward cards available.

For my money, the Starwood Preferred Guest card is one of the absolute best travel rewards credit cards. Currently you earn 10,000 Starpoints on your first purchase. That alone is enough for up to 3 free nights at a category 1 or 2 Starwood hotels such as the Sheraton, W Hotel or the Westin. If you spend $15,000 on the card in the first six months, you’ll earn another 15,000 Starpont bonus. And you can transfer the points (usually on a 1:1 basis) to over 30 airline miles programs. And to top it off, there is no annual fee for the first year.

At first glance the Miles Discover credit card is just your ordinary travel card. Earn one point for every $1 in purchases and double miles for up to $3,000 in travel and restaurant purchases ever year. But this card has some interesting advantages. You can book travel with no blackout dates or restrictions. You can earn unlimited miles that never expire. You can redeem points to travel rewards or cash beginning with just 1,000 points. And best of all, there is no annual fee.

If you’re looking for an airline miles card, the Platinum Delta SkyMiles credit card is one of the best. After your first purchase, you’ll earn 20,000 bonus SkyMiles, including 5,000 Medallion Qualification Miles). You’ll earn double miles on purchases at most grocery stores, home improvement stores and gas stations. The miles never expire. And you can start redeeming SkyMiles when you’ve accumulated just 10,000. For similar benefits, you can also consider the Gold Delta SkyMiles card.

The Chase TravelPlus Visa Card offers two great features in one card. First, you earn 2 miles for every $1 spent on travel purchases and 1 point on everything else. You can redeem the points for airline tickets, cash or gift cards. You can earn an unlimited number of points and there are no blackout dates or seat restrictions applied. Second, you get a 0% APR for 12 months on purchases and balance transfers. You can also check out my page on other great 0% balance transfer cards.

With the Hilton HHonors card from American Express, you’ll earn 10,000 bonus points after your first purchase, which is enough for one free night. If you spend $5,000 on the card in 5 months, you’ll earn a 15,000 HHonors point bonus. You’ll also earn a 2,500 bonus for each of your first 4 stays at a participating Hilton family hotel. You’ll earn 3 to 5 HHonors points on purchases, there is no annual fee, and no blackout dates.

Bonus Card

As a bonus, I thought I’d mention the Blue Sky card by American Express. With Blue Sky you earn points on everything you buy, and can redeem the points with airlines, hotels, car rentals and even cruises. You’ll receive up to $100 off for every 7,500 points. There are no blackout dates or restrictions, no annual fees, and you even get 0% APR for the first six months on purchases.

So there you have it. Five of the best travel reward credit cards plus one bonus card. I’ve used some of these and others to travel for free, and you can’t beat free when it comes to smarter money management.

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